The road goes ever on and on
by Luthien Miriel
Summary: A new adventure for Frodo and Sam (and all the rest)
1. A loss of finance

Frodo sat on the root of a tree dangling his feet in the river. It was the slow summer days in the shire that he loved the most. He gazed into the clear water, small fish darting to and fro, searching for little bits of sea plant. I wish every day were like this. I wish i had none of the worries i have now. He thought to himself. Lost in thought, he hardly heard Sam coming down the path singing to himself.  
  
Oh its a lovely day for fishing and a lovely day for wishing and a lovely day for singing out my joy  
  
and its a lovely day for walking and a lovely day for talking and a lovely day for being a young boy  
  
"Oy!Frodo!" Sam called, running the last few feet of the path, frodo looked up. "Hallo Sam, here for a fish or two i see" he said smiling at his dearest friend. "well, as the song says, its a lovely day for fishing, and indeed it is!" He said happily, and plopped down beside frodo, dropping his line into the water. Frodo watched lazily as fish were seduced by the dangling bit of meat on the hook, and snatched outof the water, no doubt to contribute to the feast that was to happen that very night. "37 years old..." groaned Frodo, who was not at all happy with his age. "Thats not old." said Sam, who was 39, which really was hardly an adult in hobbit years. They sat in silence, sam enjoying his fishing, and Frodo thinking of the hours to come. "I wonder when Gandalf will arrive? He was supposed to be here last evening, but i've heard no news of him" said Frodo. "you know Gandalf," said Sam, "he's probably off on an errand, he'll be here, dont worry, he wouldnt miss his favorite hobbits birthday." Frodo smiled, "favorite hobbit indeed" he laughed.  
  
Hobbiton was in an uproar, running around, setting up tents, hobbits arriving, singing, cooking, all in preperation for the celebration. Oe grand tent was the center, in a big field in the north end. other smaller dining ones wer around it, but the main festivities were to be held in the main one. As the sun grew lower in the skky, hobbits began to gather around the tents, and waiters began to pour the drink. More and more hobbits gathered in the field, from near and far, and as the music began playing the party began. Fiddles and drums played a traditional brandybuck tune, and all who were there, brandybuck or not, joined in. It involved a down- up down- up sort of rhythm, with kicking of the legs, and clapping of the hands, and the fast beat of the song made it a widely spread favorite. Frodo joined in too, but he was not entirely enjoying himself, for Gandalf had still not arrived, and the sun was set. As the last light faded, and gave way to the light of the many candles, Frodo grew even more worried. And when the last of the dancing ended, and they began to sit down to the meal, frodo was considering sending out a search, in case someting had happened to the dear wizard. Sam looked over at Frodo. His brow was furrowed, and he was hunched over his ale. He wanted to know what was wrong so he walked over to him. "Fropdo my lad! its your birthday! why are you so glum?" "It worries me Sam, where do you suppose he is?" said Frodo, not looking up, "I tell you he was detained, hes fine im sure of it. You know Gandalf, theres no one in middle earth more able to defend himself then he." Frodo considered this, but wondered ifg it was true, Sam;s probably right, I should stop worrying, this is my birthday after all he thoguh. And with that, he got up and stood on a soap box at the head of the tent. "my dear hobbits!" he yeled, and held up his hands signalling for the chatting to stop, speech time. "Since the death of my dear uncle Bilbo, i am the leading expert in speeches, but i must admit, i forgot to write one on this particular occasion, so forgive thecrudity of my words. I have been among you for many a year, and I know many of you quite well. But bad tidings have fallen upon me, and it seems the family fortune has been spent. So i must leave this fine town, and all of you fine hobbits, to where i dont yet know. but when i do, I will tell you." This set a hush on the crowd, except the sacksville-bagginses who were more then a little miffed at the idea of all their family money having been spent. "but before i leave, have no fear, all my belongings will be given out at dawn on the 17th day come if you will to my hole, and ill bestow you with what i see fit." and with this the crowd applauded his descision. "The time has come for me to now say goodbye, and on a fine evening as this, i wish you all a very fond farewell." and he stepped off the box, and disapeared out of the tent.  
  
Merry and Pippin, cousins of Frodo's sat together talking. "I wonder what 'eel give me" said Pippin. "If he thinks hes gettin away with just silverware hes got a right mind." said Pippin laughing. "well, you know what ive always had me eye on, that crate of old tobey hes got stashed in there somewhere." laughed Merry. Though Frodo was their cousin, theyd alwayd thought him odd. He had many old maps of places far, where hobbits seldom ventured, he had tales of strange people, and strange happenings, and kept to himsefl aside from his best mate Sam. "I wonder where 'eel go. 'ees got all those strange maps, maybe 'eel take os with him!" said Pippin, "Ive never been outside of the shire, it'd be quite the adventure wouldnt it Merry?" "well, we could ask him, i cant see why he wouldnt want the company." said Merry.  
  
The 17th day of the 2nd month came quickly. Frodo had spent the last weeks sorting through his belongings trying to decide what to give away. It was hard work for such a small creature, trying to decide who to give his memories of his dear uncle away to, but it was the right thing to do he decided, and he had his mind set. As the night of the 16th gave way to the 17th hobbits, and a few good men who had been at the festivle were lined up outside Frodo's house. It wasnt often that hobbits aquired new belongings. Most of what they had had been passed down for many generations, andit was seldom they had tey excitment of new things. The first inline were the sacksville-bagginses. they had been there since before the sun rose, eager for the jewels and money they were sure they would have bestowed on them. Frodo stepped out on the stoop and held up his hands. "My dear friends, i see you have all come for your things. he time has come, you may proceed one by one. Do not be dissapointed with what you get. I have decided on what i think fit, and that is the end of it. Proceed." With that, he stepped back into his house, and Rosey Sacksville followed. He led her down the long entrance hallway into the shady kitchen, where he had stacks of thi ngs laying around. "For you Rosey, you who has never been kind to me, I feel i am being most generous in giving you this." and he handed her a set of silverware carefully wrapped in mithril and tied with orandil at the center. At first Rosey was angry but then, she thought, I really was nenver nice to him was i? and it is quite nice, after all, he'll be gone for good, and then house will be ours. She smiled and thanked him, and turned and walked out the door, next to come in was Mirl Baggins, a great uncle of Frodo's, and husband to Rosey Sacksville. He cleared his throat as he stooped to enter the kitchen. "ah Mirl, dear uncle Mirl, as you know when i am gone this house will be yours. The gift i lay upon you is as follows, my thanks. Thank you for being family, and for supporting Bilbo on his many adventures. And of cors the estate. I think thats more then enough." he said, and looked up at his great uncle. Mirl twisted his mouth to keep from scowling. A mere thank you was not at all the heaps of gold, and ancient paintings he had pictured. "yes, well, hope you have a pleasant journy" he said gruffly and turned abruptly o his heel as he exited. next to enter was Gaffer Gamgee. Sam's father, and gardener to Bilbo. "ah Gaffer, for many years you served my uncle and I'm sure he would want you to be the one holding the estate, unfortunently my estranghed relatives have the deeds, so all i can offer is this." and he handed him a sheathed sword made of the finest silver from the mines of Moria. The handle was carved with a dragon wrapped around the till and a ruby as bright as the sun set in the aft. The sheath itself was carved with a tale about a young hobbit who journeyed to Orthanc never to return. Aswell he handed him a leather pouched filled with coins. Gaffer looked up at him. "thank you me dear hobbit. Y'ev bin kind to me all th' years and Oid be glad to offer y'e me services on yer journy." "thank you, dear gaffer, but I fear it might not be as easy a path as you think. There is much you have not been told my friend, and i think it best you didnt come, though i appreciate the offer of course." Gaffer smiled and walked out. Next in line was Sam, who entered meekly and said little. "sam, my dearest friend, there is nothing i could give you that would justify the friendship you've bestowed on me, but please accept this." said Frodo, and handed him a case of winyard, as well, he placed on top a book of poems written by an elven woman Numaryë. "Frodo, you cant give me this, this is an artifact, a jewel of the shire, I do not know of things as fine as these" He said stuttering. "Sam, it is the least i can give you, and if you see here anyting else you wish, say it, and it shall be yours" but sam just smiled, and walked away. And so the day went, coming and going, as the house emptyed and the dusk grew thick, the last of Bilbos old thiings was passed on. NIght fell. Frodo did not sleep well. He dreamt of Gandalf crying for help, and of Sam turning away from him in disgust. And he kept seeing the face of an elf whom he did not know. When at last he woke, the sun was not yet risen. He lay quiet for a few minutes and was startled by the sound of a knocking on his door. He put on a robe and went to answer it. It was Sam, looking terrifyed. "sam? what iws it? whence is it? why have ye come?" "frodo, strange thiings are afoot. Horrible noises, horrible songs coming from the Brandywine, people flee, come we must go! I fear someting terrible arrives anon on nigh! Let us flee!" He shoved Frodo aside, and went to his cupboards, taking out a rucksack and filling it with clothes, cloaks, loaves of bread, cheese, bags of tea, tobey and a pipe, a bottle of winyard, a bottle of ale, carrots, and a bit of dried meat. Next he grabbed a cloak for Frodo and fetched his walking stick and a belt. "Theres no time to change, you'll juts have to go as you are! now come! the time is now!" And they ran to the stable grabbing 2 stout ponies already laden with Sams things, and rode west, towards Mirkwood. As the sun gaveway to the day, they slowed, and when they reached the borders of hobbiton they stopped for a bit to eat, and an explanation. They started a fire and Frodo changed into proper travel wear. "Now Sam, tell me what were those fell sounds you heard? What news came? Did they not send out riders?" "I know naught of the fell riders, but i know they were acursed for the sounds they made were most unearthly. Naught have i ever heard noises such as those." Sam said, his eyes widening. "Gaffer said he'd heard them once before. He said they were riders of....of morder sir." Frodo dropped the bread he was eating. "mordor? what news of them?" 


	2. To Buckland

"I havnt heard." said Sam through a mouthful of bread, "but I think it has something to do with the shadow that has been growing in the east and..." "and what?" Frodo asked, "and why Gandalf never came" said Sam, looking into Frodo's worried eyes. "Oh Sam, you don't think.." said Frodo, not daring to say what was in his kind. "but no, not nigh has the white wizard fallen, not ever shall he fall. He will remain Domcrow, until the end of middle earth. Naught shall he die by the hands of any man or beast. HIs foe is beyond them all." Frodo said, eyes closed, wanting to believe it. "I'm sure he's alright. perhaps we should try and find him? He may be able to give us some answers." said Sam "but where?" "That I do not know. We should make for Buckland at the present, i think. They are away from what i presume to be the cause of all this commotion, let us ride, and see what we can learn." They packed up thier things, and rode north west, into the sun which was getting low in the sky. As the first stars twinkled above, they crossed the borders of Buckland. All seemed still, yet unearthly still. Not a breath of wind stirred and Frodo guessed why. "They've already been here sam." Frodo's voice wavered as he aid this, and as their eyes adjusted to the new light they saw that it was true. The houses were black from burning, there was no gathering in the pub, there were no voices lifeted in song. There were no carts going through the streets. All had fled. All that was left was the silence of the deserted town. Sam shuddered in the cold. Suddenly he ran. "Sam where are you going?" Frodo called after him, but he did not turn, istead he fled on, into the slient town. Frodo quickly followed him. They ran through the streets to the west end of the town and sam crashed through the burnt remains of a door. "Alas!" he cried. "gone! but to death? or to fear? will i ever see them again?" he cried aloud. Frodo came in, "Sam, why do you cry?" he asked. "My aunt, frodo, my cousins, but uncle, they all lived here, but where are they now? what horrible fate has befallen them?" He sobbed. They went out of the house, and walked through the streets. Then from behind them someone called, "sam? saw-wise is it you?" Sam turned to see his cousin maralyn, running towards them. "oh sam! it is! it is! They fled sam, petty, dave, gillin, they all fled to the hills, and on to bree i suspect!" she yelled, "but I couldnt leave them sam, the horses, they were so frightened, I didnt know what to di, I hid in the stables, and when they began to burn, I fled to the woods sam!" She fell intop his arms sobbing. "Mary, its alright." said sam."to bree you say? we have room on our ponies for one more, ride with us mary, I wouldnt think of leaving you behind." he said to the young hobbit. "But sam, we know naught news from bree, what if they came there aswell? what if there is none left of bree? where then shall we go?" she asked, with tears still streaming down her pretty face. "I dont think the great town of bree, with its men tall and broad would be taken so easily, come! Let us make haste!" he said, and together with Frodo, they rode north, to the villiage of bree, and whatever fate awaited them. 


	3. Wandering through Bree

They were weary. They had been riding for some hours and the sun was again begginning to rise. Their horses were slow, and their stomachs rumbled, yet they did not stop. Sam had an overwhelming urge to see what had happened to his family, and pressed the weary company on. On the 4th night since their departure they crossed the borders of Bree. Men were coming to and fro, mingled with hobbits. The black wave had not yet hit them. Sams spirits rose. HIs eyes lit up, he pressed the horses to go faster. "Sam, we must stop for the night. I fear for the horses, we woukd be lost should they go lame" said Frodo, and Sam knew he was right. They left the horses and Marylyn in the care of the innkeeper whom frodo knew, and set out to find sams family on foot. The men of bree were tall and broad and stared down on frodo and sam from their height. The hobbits of bree were also quite broad but somewhat shorter then frodo and sam who were bth quite tall as hobbits go. The town was big, and they asked many people if they had heard the name gamgee in the streets but so far none had. Nearly meal time it was, and they were both quite hungry, as neither of them had eaten since the previous day. They returned back to the inn for their meal. "Sam, sam! did you find them?" Mary asked when she saw them. "no Marylyn, but were not through looking just yet." They sat down to eat. When they were almost through the inn keeper, a man called charles bertler, but charlbert to them, came round to their meal table. "I have a message for you frodo." he said. "slipped my mind when i ferst saw ye." he said. "Mithrandil passed through this town some few nights ago, ere he searched for you, He acted quite oddly you know, said there were terrible things afoot and that he must find ye. Said that if i saw ye passin through i ought ter tell ye to make for rivendell. Ere he might await you." "If he knew we had not yet come here, why didnt he seek us out in hobbiton?" frodo asked, "well that little sir, i dont know." he said and went about waiting. Frodo suddenly fet very small in the dining hall of bree. The men were loud and rowdy, having consumed much the town's pride of ale, and he felt an enormous releif when his head hit the soft pillows of their hobbit room. Try as he did sam coulkd not get to sleep. the second he closed his eyes the faces of his relatives, bruised, bloody and crying to him appeared in his mind. "Frodo?" "yes sam?" "I dont think we're going to find them." "whys that sam?" "I just have the feeling their not here. I have the feeling theyre not anywhere." The next day they awoke to the rattling of a cart close to their window. They got dressed, packed their things, and went for breakfast. They ate a hardy meal of eggs and tomatoes, and loaded the rest of their stuff on to the horses. They thanked CHarlbert and were on their way, continuing north, towards the bree town of Tottlewood. They stopped at every cottage they passed to ask if they had seen or heard of any gamgee but again, none had. The went slowly this time, none of them talking much. They gazed at the fields around them, starting to turn brown as autumn began, and the trees with their colours as clear as red flame, heaving down upon them with every breath of the wind. Sam remembered everything about his family, his little cousin posey especially. She had been one of his favorites, and had babysat her on many occasions. They used to joke together. He used to tell her tales of a mysterious Tommy toad who lived in his attic and smiled every time he heard her laugh. She was only 10. What has become of them? he wondered. will i ever see any of them again? As the last light faded into purple, they stopped to make camp. They lashed the horses to a nearby fence, and set up a fire in the shelter of a great tree. They ate, still speaking very little, and at last drifted off to sleep. The last thought that Frodo remembered was something Gandalf had said to him. "even in the gloom of the deepest nights of morder, just around the corner is the sun." 


End file.
